Gandhinagar: The Gujarat government will set up the Gujarat Critical Minerals Observatory & Intelligence Centre.

Finance Minister Kanubhai Desai has provisioned an allocation of Rs. 10 crore in the FY 2025 budget, which he presented on February 20th in the State Assembly.

The allocation for the proposed Observatory and Intelligence Centre has been made under the budget head of the Industry and Mines department.

The purchase of 39 new vehicles (Bolero) for the office of the Commissioner of Geology and Mining is also proposed in the budget at a cost of Rs. 4.29 crore.

As per the Gujarat State Mineral Policy a total of 1,27,000 sq. km of the state consists of rocky terrain, making it a potential mineral-rich area. So far, around 46% of these rocky regions have been surveyed through Remote Sensing and Pre-Detailed Mineral Surveys, while approximately 19% have undergone Detailed Mineral Surveys.

As a result, reserves of 18 significant minerals have been identified. Key estimates include Limestone – 11,987 million tonnes, Bauxite – 105 million tonnes, Lignite – 2,139 million tonnes, Fluorite – 11.61 million tonnes, Wollastonite – 3.04 million tonnes, Marble – 259 million tonnes, and Chalk – 83.79 million tonnes. DeshGujarat